This episode is dedicated to our dear friend Ben Manila who passed away a few weeks ago.

Ben's lively spirit and creativity laid the foundation for so much of what we do at the Science of

Happiness. Almost a decade ago he led the production of our award-winning radio

special on the Science of Gratitude, which planted the seeds for this very

podcast. Ben was kind, witty, sharp, and always radiated joy. He brought a sense of

adventure to every project,

celebrating stories, culture, and music at every turn.

His enthusiasm was infectious, trying us in,

and inspiring us to do our best work.

Ben's spirit continues to inspire and shape our work.

We're deeply grateful for the time we had with him,

and we will carry his presence through the stories we tell.

For me, D'A Martos wasn't something that I necessarily grew up with.

30, 40 years ago, when my mother migrated from our small town Tomatlan High School to Southern California.

She didn't necessarily bring some of the traditions she had in the Pueblo and so we didn't grow up with the other those Martos.

When my father passed away suddenly when I was young 20 years old,

I realized that I needed to find a way to stay connected to his memory because I think in this

culture in the US we don't talk about grief we don talk about death, there's fear attached to it.

So I learned about the tradition through community members and started learning about how to build an altar,

what all the pieces of the altar signified.

And I was trying to be really thoughtful about it.

It's a reminder for me of making that balance between the mourning, the grief, and the celebration

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